Why Choose India for your Medical Treatments ? Globalization has brought great change to the world economy and has had huge impact on India, especially in the nation's technological arena. While India has gained worldwide acclaim for its contributions to computer technology and software engineering, the contributions to medicine are equally impressive. Nowhere have those contributions been more dramatic than in the United States. There are more than 37,000 Indian physicians who now belong to the American Medical Association, many of those having received training in both India and the U.S. Indian physicians are now following their colleagues in the tech and biotech markets, and returning to rapidly enhance the healthcare infrastructure in their home country. The premier Indian hospitals initially attracted a significant share of foreign business from people of Indian origin who lived in developed countries but maintained close ties to their homeland. Because Escorts developed a healthcare infrastructure that catered to the international patient, non-Indian patients from industrialized countries, especially from Britain and Canada weary of the long waits for elective surgery and overburdened health plans, sought cardiovascular services in increasing numbers. In 2004, an estimated 150,000 foreigners visited India for medical procedures, and this number is projected to increase at a rate of 15% a year. If fact, the McKinsey consulting firm projects that India's international medical service could grow to $2.2 billion by 2012. Indian physicians, long exposed to a multicultural world, are now playing a vital role in the technological transformation in the complex society of India. That transformation promises to have a huge future impact on patient choice in the United States, creating a true global health care option. India will with no doubt become the global health destination. It aims to replicate the Thai model, which is still the first Asian destination for International Patients. With prices at a fraction (sometimes only 1/10 th !) of those in the US or EU, the concept has broad consumer appeal – if people can overcome their prejudices about health care in developing countries. The reality is that Indian private facilities offer advanced technology and high-quality procedures on par with hospitals in developed nations. India is the leading country promoting medical tourism in the world. It is even moving into a new area of "medical outsourcing" where subcontractors aim to provide services to the overburdened medical care systems in western countries. Medical tourism to India is growing by 30% a year and the Indian education system is churning out an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 doctors and nurses each year. India benefits from a large staff of world class experts and the ultra-competitive cost advantage it offers. While a heart surgery costs $30,000 in the US, it costs $8,000 in India. Similarly, a bone marrow transplant costs $26,000 here compared to $250,000 in the US. You can add to this that Indian doctors are among the best in the world.